Hanging By A Moment
by Snoopy7
Summary: CHAPTER 10 UPLOADED! Next chapter SHOULD be the last one, but I can promise you there wil be another story coming soon! Please read and review!
1. Making Mistakes

Hanging by a moment  
  
Disclaimer: I do not own Everwood or any of the characters in this story. They are all property of the WB.  
  
Rating: PG, slight cussing.  
  
A/N: Amy and Ephram go on a hike, but when it takes a turn for the worse, what will Amy do to help?  
  
"I'm gonna go hiking with Amy, dad. I should be back later tonight." Ephram opened the front door, but stopped when his father's voice called him.  
  
"Ephram, why aren't you telling me this until now?" Andy faced Ephram from he seat on the couch.  
  
"I was just told she wanted to take me hiking this morning." Ephram advanced out the door, closing it behind him.  
  
"Oh, so that was that phone call at 6:00am. I was wondering who had the idea to wake the household up that early." Andy realized he was talking to himself and stopped before another word left his lips.  
  
******  
  
It was a clear Saturday morning in Everwood, Colorado. Ephram walked to Amy Abbott's house and gently knocked on the door, "Coming!" He heard his companion say, "Hey, Ephram! I'll be ready in a minute, why don't you come in and have a seat?" Amy opened the door wider for him.  
  
"I'll come in, but I'm not much of a sitting person." Ephram bobbed his head a little as he spoke.  
  
"That's fine, wait right here." Amy pointed to an archway separating the entry from the family room. Ephram leaned up against one of the posts and stood patiently.  
  
Amy returned moments later, her backpack in hand, and smile on her face, "Ready Grover?" She headed towards the door.  
  
"Ready." He smiled back at her, even though she wasn't looking.  
  
They reached there ascending point about 30 minutes later, "Are you sure about this?" Ephram tilted his head up to try and see the tip of the mountain. It was no use, it was much too high.  
  
"Of course! You aren't scared, are you Grover?" Amy nudged his arm.  
  
"Huh? Oh, no, of course not. I just haven't ever climbed a mountain this high. Compared to this they were molehills." Ephram laughed under his breath at that joke. He didn't even mean to say it.  
  
"You've been climbing before?"  
  
"Once, with my mom. It was for my 13th birthday. She had made plans for all the family to go, but Delia was too young, and my dad, well, my dad never showed up. We left Delia with my grandparents and spent the weekend wherever we were, I can't remember." Ephram walked past Amy to go to a sign sloppily pushed into the ground, "Warning, steep incline and rock slides. Proceed with caution." He read.  
  
"Ignore it. It's been there for at least 5 years and nobody has reported anything about it. We'll be fine." Amy walked past Ephram this time; he was getting skeptical about going through with this hike. But, since Amy Abbott was going to go, he might as well, too.  
  
******  
  
"Daddy, where did Ephram go?" Delia walked downstairs.  
  
"He's gone hiking with Amy; he said he would be back later today." He repeated his son's words.  
  
"Oh, well I hope he was telling the truth. He promised me he would watch a movie with me later." Delia joyfully skipped into the kitchen to get a snack.  
  
"Don't get Willy Wonka an..."  
  
"I know dad. I don't plan on it. Last time you weren't there." Andy watched Delia prance back upstairs. He felt ashamed that she would still be holding something like that against him.  
  
"Don't break this promise, Ephram. Your sister loves you too much." Andy whispered into the air and sending the words in Ephram's direction. That was the last calm feeling Andy had about Ephram that day.  
  
******  
  
Ephram and Amy had been walking for two hours now. Ephram was become more at ease with the mountain. He hadn't encountered any rock slides, but there were a lot of steep inclines. It wasn't too difficult climbing up, though.  
  
The one thing he was never good at, was watching where he was going. He made that mistake just now. He was watching Amy instead of where he was placing his feet. He never saw the loose patch of dirt on the trail. He stepped on it and immediately fell. He started falling backwards since the mountain was so steep, the thing that should have stopped him was the fence at the edge, but it didn't. Ephram flew right through.  
  
His eyes searched frantically for something to grab onto, and luckily he saw a sturdy looking root sticking out the side. His hands barely gripped it in time, and when they did, he felt immediate pain shoot through them. He knew they were scratched up. There was no doubt about it.  
  
"Ephram!" Amy yelled at him as she ran down to him.  
  
"Yeah, I'm here!" He responded slowly, careful not to make the mistake of looking down.  
  
"Are you okay?" She reached the edge, sticking her head far enough out so she could see him, "Oh God, that isn't going to hold for long."  
  
"Thanks for telling me!" Ephram began to freak.  
  
"It's okay; I'll go get some help."  
  
"NO!" He screamed before she got the chance to stand, "You can't leave. You just said yourself that this won't hold much longer, so if you leave, I'll probably be dead when you come back." Ephram was grasping at the root now. Trying not to fall further down.  
  
"Okay, okay. I won't leave. I have to go back and get my cell phone, though. I left my pack where I was before you slipped." Amy quickly retrieved her belongings, and Ephram's, and then made her way back down.  
  
"Call my dad! He'll be here with a helicopter in no time!" Ephram had no idea what he was saying. His dad was the worst person with directions, "On second thought, maybe your dad would be more help."  
  
"Good idea." Amy dialed as fast as she could, "Hello daddy?" Amy spoke into the tiny phone, "Yeah, I think we've run into a little problem on the mountain." Amy paused for a second, "Um, Ephram is kind of about to fall off."  
  
Ephram could hear Dr. Abbott's voice from where he was. He was laughing mentally when he actually thought that the guy might actually care about him. He was jerked out of that thought as the root was being pulled from the dirt it was lodged into.  
  
"Amy, I'm going to need help here soon!" Ephram called up to his panicking friend. Amy nodded with tears in her eyes as she hung up with her father.  
  
"He said he'd be here a soon as possible." She pulled rope out of her backpack and lowered it to Ephram.  
  
"Why didn't you think of this before?" Ephram scolded.  
  
"I was too scared to think then." Amy fastened it around her and laid down on the ground, "Wrap it around you, I'm going to try and pull you up."  
  
Ephram did as he was told, but it wasn't easy. He had to secure himself with one hand the whole time. When he had finally managed his feat, he looked at Amy with high hopes. Deep inside he knew he was too heavy for the girl, but he still had wished it was possible.  
  
"I can't do it!" Amy said with a shaky voice, "This isn't going to work!"  
  
"Don't freak out, Amy. Keep trying!"  
  
It was funny. Ephram was telling her not to freak out, and yet, he could barely keep himself calm.  
  
******  
  
RING!! Andy ran to the phone and picked it up after the 3rd ring, "Hello?"  
  
"Andy, this is Harold Abbott. I'm afraid I have some bad news."  
  
******  
  
"I'm sorry, Ephram. I can't pull you up." Amy was out of breath and very weak from pulling.  
  
"Don't strain yourself, Amy. Just keep the rope held so I don't fall. I'm too far past the root to grab onto it again, so if you let go, that's bye, bye to Ephram." He didn't even want to think about that.  
  
"Do you mind if I sing right now? There's one song that always makes me feel better when I'm scared."  
  
"Can you carry a tune?" He joked.  
  
"Very funny, Ephram."  
  
"Grover."  
  
"What?"  
  
"My name is Grover."  
  
******  
  
"Oh my God." Andy dropped the phone he was holding, "This can't be happening." Andy sat on the couch and let it sink in. Delia came downstairs at the sound of her fathers despair.  
  
"What's wrong?"  
  
"Delia, sweetie. Sit down." She did as she was told, "I don't think Ephram will make it to your movie date."  
  
******  
  
"Sure, go ahead and sing!" Ephram answered, "I could use that right now!"  
  
Amy cleared her throat, "You can't laugh if I sound bad."  
  
"Me laugh? Never." Ephram was holding on as tight as possible.  
  
"Desperate for changing  
  
Starving for truth  
  
Closer where I Started  
  
Chasing after you  
  
I'm falling even more in love with you  
  
letting go of all I've held onto  
  
I'm standing here until you make me move  
  
I'm hanging by a moment here with you"  
  
"That isn't the song to be singing right now!" Ephram didn't want to upset Amy, "But keep going. Actually, start over if you don't mind."  
  
"Desperate for changing  
  
Starving for truth  
  
Closer where I Started  
  
Chasing after you  
  
I'm falling even more in love with you  
  
letting go of all I've held onto  
  
I'm standing here until you make me move  
  
I'm hanging by a moment here with you  
  
forgetting all I'm lacking  
  
completely and complete  
  
I'll take your invitation  
  
you take all of me  
  
now.. I'm falling even more in love with you  
  
letting go of all I've held onto  
  
I'm standing here until you make me move  
  
I'm hanging by a moment here with you  
  
I'm living for the only thing I know  
  
I'm running and not quite sure where to go  
  
I don't know what I'm diving into  
  
just hanging by a moment here with you  
  
there's nothing left to lose  
  
nothing left to fly  
  
there is nothing in the world that can change my mind  
  
there is nothing else  
  
there is nothing else..  
  
Desperate for changing  
  
Starving for truth  
  
Closer where I Started  
  
Chasing after you  
  
I'm falling even more in love with you  
  
letting go of all I've held onto  
  
I'm standing here until you make me move  
  
I'm hanging by a moment here with you  
  
I'm living for the only thing I know  
  
I'm running and not quite sure where to go  
  
I don't know what I'm diving into  
  
just hanging by a moment here with you  
  
just hanging by a moment  
  
hanging by a moment...  
  
hanging by a moment...  
  
hanging by a moment here with you.."  
  
Amy kept singing that song over and over again. She never once seemed to tense up when she looked at Ephram dangling. He was glad she was happy, and glad to still be alive at that moment. 


	2. Proceed With Caution

Hanging by a moment  
  
Disclaimer: I do not own Everwood or any of the characters in this story. They are all property of the WB.  
  
Rating: PG, slight cussing.  
  
A/N: Amy and Ephram go on a hike, but when it takes a turn for the worse, what will Amy do to help?  
  
Andy and Delia ran to the car and drove to the Abbott's house. He was greeted by Dr. Abbott, "Andy, I am so sorry about this." They walked into the house together.  
  
"Have you heard anything else?" Dr. Brown was frantic.  
  
"No, she said she was going to drop a rope down to him last I heard, but I don't know how that went."  
  
"Dad, where is Ephram?" Delia knew her brother was hanging for life somewhere; she just wanted to know where on the mountain.  
  
"I'm not sure, Delia. He'll be fine, though. I promise." Andy sat next to Delia, and across from Dr. Abbott.  
  
The phone rang and Harold shot up from his seat, "Hello?" He looked at Andy, "Amy is Ephram still okay?" All he could think about, for some reason, was the boy's safety, "Amy calm down. Everything will be fine." He paused to let her speak, "Quit saying that sugarplum, he is not going to..."  
  
******  
  
"...FALL!" Amy dropped the phone and grabbed the rope with all her might. Ephram was slipping, and she knew there was almost nothing she could do about it, "Do you hear me? I am not going to let you fall!" She pulled harder.  
  
"Amy just hang on! You're holding my life in your hands!" He knew he shouldn't have told her that.  
  
"Gee thanks for making me feel better!" She was losing her grip fast. Even though the rope was tied around her waist, she couldn't let go of the rope. If she did, she would be pulled down with him.  
  
"Amy?" She heard a very small voice coming from somewhere. She then remembered she had left her dad on the phone.  
  
"Daddy, I can't do this much longer!" She exclaimed after picked the small cell up.  
  
******  
  
"Alright, I need you to do something for me. Is there a tree around you anywhere?" He already knew the answer to that, "Okay, can you get the rope to it?" He got an upset look on his face, "Try to pull him up a little, Amy. You have to do this for him." He stopped and looked at Delia, "If not for him, for his sister. He promised her a movie tonight, and I bet he wants to keep that promise." He paused yet again, "No, Amy..."  
  
******  
  
"He's not lying to you! I made a promise to Delia that tonight would be movie night for the both of us. She wanted to watch something simple, so I agreed." Ephram tried not to move too much, for fear he would fall, "But I don't know that I will ever make it back for that."  
  
"You're going to make it back, Ephram Brown. I'm not going to let you fall!" Amy pulled as hard as she could, and sucking all the energy out of her in the mean time. She managed to reach the closest tree, and was barely able to tie it around.  
  
She had done it. She had secured Ephram so he wouldn't fall. She sank to the ground in a big sigh.  
  
"What's going on up there?" Ephram asked.  
  
"You should be fine now, Ephram. A tree is keeping you from falling." Amy never paid attention to how big the tree was, but she had faith in it...Having faith in a tree wasn't something she did a lot, either.  
  
"Oh, well, I guess that's reassuring...Sort of." Ephram said under his breath.  
  
Amy put the phone back up to her ear, "Daddy, Ephram..."  
  
******  
  
"...Is going to be fine. Amy tied the rope to a sturdy tree." Dr. Abbott hung up the phone after receiving the news of Amy's success.  
  
"Is she sure the tree is sturdy enough? Because if it's not, it could uproot and Ephram could fall." Andy was pacing now.  
  
"Daddy, sit down, you're making me dizzy." Delia was tired of her dad's impatience, even though she didn't blame him.  
  
"Then don't watch, sweetie." He kept pacing, "Why don't we go out there to get them? Why don't we help them?"  
  
"We are helping them. The only way we know how. I can't take you to the mountain because I have no idea which one it is. My daughter doesn't tell me anything anymore. I've lost that fatherly touch." Harold confessed.  
  
"No, you haven't. If you have, she wouldn't have called you." Andy tried making the man feel better, "Did she give any clues as to where they might be?"  
  
"Even if she did, there are too many places similar to each other. That's why I call a team of professionals to go look for them, and help Amy help Ephram...If that makes any sense." Dr. Abbot looked confused by what he just said.  
  
"Plenty." Delia said quietly.  
  
"Delia, do want something to eat while we wait for any more news?" Dr. Abbott offered.  
  
"No, I just want my brother back. He isn't going to die, is he?"  
  
"No, Delia. I already told you, Ephram will be fine." Dr. Brown finally sat down next to Delia.  
  
"Dad, are..."  
  
******  
  
"...You sure?" Ephram looked up in hopes of seeing Amy's face, "Something doesn't seem right to me." He couldn't place it, but he had a bad feeling in his gut.  
  
"Its fine, Ephr...Grover." She stopped herself, "Everything is just pine. Now all we need is for that rescue team to come help me out."  
  
"Help YOU out? What about me? I'm the one 'Hanging by a Moment'!" Ephram repeated the songs name.  
  
"That's the song that makes me feel better. I'm sorry if it scared you, or upset you, but it made me feel safer." Amy leaned against a boulder.  
  
"Made you feel saf..." Ephram stopped, "I'm not getting into this again. There is no way." He let out a heavy sigh, and just sat there hanging from a rope. He wished he could tie it around himself, because his arms were getting extremely tired.  
  
"Why not? Why don't you say it? You know you want to!" Amy was tired of Ephram talking back.  
  
"Amy, I don't want to fight with you! And I doubt you want to fight with me. The only reason we are both like this is because of our situation...I hope." Ephram wanted so badly to be able to see Amy's face.  
  
"Oh, well, you're right...I think." She carefully walked to the edge, "Is that the way you feel?"  
  
"Yeah, I wouldn't have said it if it wasn't the way I felt." Ephram's longings were satisfied as Amy scooted her body forward so she could safely see him from atop the cliff, "There you are. I was beginning to forget what you looked like." He joked.  
  
"Same here, that's why I came to see you," Amy smiled for the first time since Ephram had fallen, "How do you feel?"  
  
"Exhausted." Ephram nearly let go of the rope, but caught himself in time.  
  
"Don't let go!" Amy yelled.  
  
That's when it happened. They didn't know it, and it was a ways away, but danger was getting closer by the second.  
  
******  
  
Everyone sat in the Abbott's living room. Amy's mom and dad, Bright, her brother, Amy's grandparents, and Delia and Andy. They were all hoping for any word on how Ephram was doing. The Abbott's never thought they would be so worried about someone they hardly even knew...Especially Bright.  
  
He never liked Ephram much. But that all just changed when he got a call at his friends house that Ephram was in trouble, and Amy was the only one there with him. He knew she was scared, and Ephram had to have peed in his pants by now. Bright knew he would have by that time.  
  
Delia sat thinking about what could happen to Ephram. The thought had crossed her mind that he could fall so many times, but she never thought about HOW he could fall. She knew he could accidentally let go of the rope, and fall then. Or the rope could snap, and that would make him begin to plummet downward. She had to stop thinking about things after that, because she could feel tears in her eyes, and she didn't want to cry in front of her dad...Or Bright.  
  
******  
  
"Amy' what are you doing?" Ephram looked mischievously up at the girl. She was just staring at him.  
  
"I was just thinking." She stated bluntly.  
  
"About what?" He was getting curious.  
  
"You don't want to know, trust me." She let her head rest on her folded arms.  
  
"Yes I do." He didn't know what he was in for.  
  
"Okay. Well, I was thinking about the many ways you could fall. I'm not saying any of them to you, though. You have to think of them on your own." She smiled when she said that.  
  
"Thanks, but I'd rather not." He laughed a little. He was glad Amy was there with him. Although if she hadn't been, he probably wouldn't even be there. He would be sitting at home watching some movie with Delia. He wanted to keep his promise...He was going to, he was positive.  
  
At least he was until he heard it. It sounded like an earthquake, or something like it. He didn't know since he had never been in one. He knew it was possible, but it didn't feel like an earthquake.  
  
Then it hit him. Pictures of the sign flashed in his head. The sign at the beginning of the trail. WARNING: Steep Inclines and...Ephram didn't want to remember the rest...Rockslides ahead. Proceed with caution.  
  
"Ephram, I think I was wrong about that sign!" Amy yelled looking down at him.  
  
"You feel it too?" He wished she hadn't. She was in more danger than he was, but he was still very much in danger.  
  
"Yeah, I do. I can hide, but what about you?" Amy kept looking down at him.  
  
"Amy don't worry about me! Get behind something...Protect yourself!" He ordered. He didn't want her getting hurt on account of him.  
  
Amy quickly ran behind the boulder she had recently been leaning against. She wasn't positive it would protect her completely, but she had faith in it, too.  
  
Ephram prayed that Amy would be alright, not caring a bit about himself. Then it happened. Amy was screaming and there was no escape. Rocks fell from the air like rain in an awful storm. 


	3. Getting help

Hanging by a moment  
  
Disclaimer: I do not own Everwood or any of the characters in this story. They are all property of the WB.  
  
Rating: PG, slight cussing.  
  
A/N: Amy and Ephram go on a hike, but when it takes a turn for the worse, what will Amy do to help?  
  
Ephram could hear screaming through the shower of rocks and wood, only to discover it was his own. He was screaming at the top of his lungs. He was getting battered and beaten by the downpour of hard and sharp painful objects.  
  
He knew holding on was what he had to do, but it seemed nearly impossible at this time. One of his hands slipped off of the rope, leaving him dangling downward while rock continued to fall. He didn't want to let go, and he didn't want to look down, but he knew he had to do one, or both.  
  
He slowly looked down as the rockslide slowed to a couple of pebbles flying over the edge. He hadn't realized that there was a small ledge below him, not too far down. He knew it would hurt to fall, but he also knew he couldn't stay like that forever.  
  
"My cell phone," Ephram heard Amy yell, "It's falling!" He looked up just in time to see the small object descend past him. He reached for it, which was his one mistake at that point. He grabbed for the phone quickly; he couldn't keep his one hand on the rope. He felt himself falling, and then heard Amy scream.  
  
The ledge below him was coming up to him so fast that he didn't know what to do. Everything was going too fast, and yet, so slow. He looked back up at Amy just as he hit the ground, and everything faded to black.  
  
******  
  
"Daddy, I want Ephram home. I don't care about that stupid movie; I just want Ephram back home." Delia buried her head in her father's arms.  
  
"I know, Delia. I'm sure everyone here wants Ephram and Amy home. They will be just fine, I promise." Dr. Brown looked at Bright. The boy looked doubtful at hearing those words.  
  
"Don't promise something you can't keep, Dr. Brown." He finally managed to get out, "You don't know if they are both okay. There is one mountain up there that is very dangerous at times, but I doubt Amy would take Ephram to a place with rockslides and stuff like that when he has no experience." Bright babbled on and on about that, worrying Delia with every word.  
  
"STOP IT!" She yelled after she could take no more, "I don't care what you think, Bright. My brother is up there, with YOUR sister, and they are in trouble. Quit talking about things that might happen to them if they are on that mountain, because they probably aren't, you said so yourself!"  
  
Delia stomped out of the room, not planning to go back in with that creep in there. She didn't like him anymore.  
  
******  
  
Ephram slowly opened his eyes, immediately feeling pain all over his body. He groaned as he slowly tried moved, holding his head.  
  
"Ephram, are you okay?" He could hear Amy yell, but he dare not look up. The blinding sunlight was already too much for his agonizing headache. He had quit trying to sit up.  
  
"No!" He yelled back up to her, "I just fell fifteen feet! How do you think I feel?" He didn't mean to be rude, but with the pain he was feeling, he had to let something make him feeling better, "Start singing again!"  
  
"What?" Amy was surprised, "Why?"  
  
"I need something to calm me down, and I'm not Hanging by a moment anymore. So sing something." Ephram was persistent.  
  
I'm not singing again. But, I have something that might make you feel better. I think I see my cell phone, if you can see it, call your dad." Amy carefully pointed over the edge to the silver object.  
  
"Yeah, I see it." Ephram slowly reached for it, barely grabbing it with his left hand. He dialed his home number, but nobody answered. He tried his dad's cell, and heard Delia's voice.  
  
"Hello?" She had been crying.  
  
"Delia, I need to talk to dad, where is he?" Ephram couldn't speak without feeling pain shoot through his chest.  
  
"Ephram, is that you!?!" she sounded perky immediately.  
  
"Yes, Del, it's me...Where is dad?" Ephram was growing impatient.  
  
"I'll go get him." He was relieved to hear those words.  
  
"Ephram," Andy's voice came over the phone, "Are you okay?"  
  
"Define okay." Ephram smiled at his remark.  
  
"Are you hurt at all?"  
  
"Yeah, I should say so." Ephram's chest was getting heavy, and it was making it harder to breathe, "There was just a rockslide, and I fell about fifteen or twenty feet, it hurts to breathe dad." Ephram was beginning to whimper.  
  
"Oh god," Ephram heard the worry in his father's voice, "Someone should be there any minute, son. Help is on the way." Just as he said that, Ephram heard Amy yell something about men in blue suits carrying ropes were coming.  
  
"Sooner than you and I think, dad." Ephram felt relief flood through his body, then his eyes began to roll to the back of his head.  
  
  
  
Sorry this chapter is so short. I just got back from Mexico this morning, and I am too tired to write anything more. I wanted to post this chapter, but I promise I will write a longer one next time. I need ideas for the next chapter from everyone, so please review. It would be much appreciated. I hope you enjoyed the story so far! 


	4. Decisions

Hanging by a moment  
  
Disclaimer: I do not own Everwood or any of the characters in this story. They are all property of the WB.  
  
Rating: PG  
  
A/N: Amy and Ephram go on a hike, but when it takes a turn for the worse, what will Amy do to help?  
  
"Ephram, is someone there with you and Amy?" Andy frantically asked questions hoping his son would respond, but he received no answer, "Ephram talk to me!"  
  
"Dr. Brown, is everything alright?" Dr. Harold Abbott walked into the room.  
  
"Yes, and no," Dr. Brown looked over at his new friend, "Apparently someone has arrived to help Ephram and Amy, but I'm worried about Ephram. I had him talking to me on the phone just a minute ago, and now I can't get a single word from him, but there also is no dial tone." Andy looked very concerned, and said a small prayer under his breath that Ephram would be okay.  
  
******  
  
Amy looked down to the small ledge Ephram had fallen to, "Ephram, someone is here to help!" That's when she noticed his eyes were closed, "Oh my god," She quietly whispered, "Ephram!"  
  
"Is everything alright, Miss?" A suited and readied "cliffhanger", that's what it said on his jumper, walked over to Amy. He had the name Jake stitched onto his uniform.  
  
"No," She squeaked, "My friend is down there, he was awake a minute ago, but now I don't think he is." She swallowed the awful feeling in her throat, and walked toward one of the other cliffhangers.  
  
Jake looked down to Ephram, and sighed, "Oh boy, this should be a fun one." He looked back to one of his partners, "Call a helicopter, we have to get this kid out of here, fast."  
  
Amy didn't want, or need, to hear those words, but she did. She was being wrapped in a blanket, even though she wasn't cold, and she just cried. She cried so much, she didn't realize she was falling asleep. Before she knew it, she couldn't see or hear anything.  
  
******  
  
"Ephram, what happened to you?" Ephram opened his eyes to see his dad standing above him impatiently, "I've been worried sick about you."  
  
"You're kidding, right?" Ephram was surprised his father hadn't heard the news, "I was hiking with Amy, remember? I must have lost my footing when I started falling. I grabbed onto a small root coming out from the side of the mountain, and then Amy lowered a rope down to me. I eventually fell onto a ledge about twenty feet below me, and the last thing I remember is...Talking to you." Ephram didn't understand why his dad didn't remember the small conversation they had had, his dad was very obviously worried about him, so why did he ask where Ephram had been?  
  
Then it hit him, Ephram was in a dream...  
  
******  
  
Amy jumped awake from one of those dreams where you are falling, and right before you hit the ground, you wake up. But this time it was worse, she was dreaming that she was Ephram, and he fell...All the way to the bottom of the mountain, wherever that was, she never paid any attention, and she was thankful for that.  
  
"Are you okay?" A young woman walked over to Amy this time, "You were probably just having a bad dream."  
  
Amy read the name on the lady's jumper; it read Abigail, "Yeah, I'm okay. Is Ephram alright?" Amy didn't realize she had only been asleep for five minutes.  
  
"We don't really know yet, we haven't been able to reach him. You've only been asleep for a few minutes." Amy's heart sunk when Abigail told her that, "My name is Abigail, and you must be Amy." She extended her hand.  
  
"Yes, I am Amy, and I knew you were Abigail, I read it on your uniform." Amy and Abby shook.  
  
"I need a little help here! What is this kid's name?" Amy heard Jake yell as he was leaning over the side.  
  
"Ephram Brown!" Amy started running over to him, but was held back. She didn't want to fight so she sat back down.  
  
******  
  
What is going on here? Ephram thought to himself as he opened his eyes, being greeted by an unpleasantly bright sun. Where am I? Oh wait, I remember now. I'm on that stupid ledge. Wait; who is that guy up there...He must be here to help!!!  
  
"Ephram Brown?" Jake yelled down, "My name is Jake Alexander, I'm here to get you down from this mountain, but I need to know a few things first."  
  
Ephram looked up as he regained that relieved feeling he had before he passed out, "Sure, what do you need to know, Jack?"  
  
"It's Jake!" Ephram had only been kidding, but apparently the young man didn't know that, "Are you hurt at all?"  
  
"That was a rhetorical question, right? I mean, you aren't really that dumb, are you?" Ephram hadn't been joking this time.  
  
"Ha, ha, very funny, just answer the question." Jake was beginning to get annoyed.  
  
"YES I'M HURT! I fell God knows how far to this little...Ledge or whatever you want to call it! I was knocked out, and then I passed out! IF I'M NOT HURT, I MUST BE SOME MIRACLE CHILD!" Ephram was getting mad, he wanted to get away from that mountain, but he had no idea how hard that was going to be.  
  
******  
  
Ephram, don't be so stupid! Don't yell at the guy who was sent to help you get down...or...Up, or whatever, from there! I'm not even that dumb!  
  
"Ephram, be nice to him! You do have to realize that he is the only one who can help you!" Amy yelled at the top of her lungs to get Ephram's attention.  
  
"Amy, come here! I want to see your face!" Amy heard Ephram call back up, she was flattered.  
  
She stuck her head past the edge, but just barely, "Hey, how are you feeling?" Ephram was sitting up now, looking like he was trying to stand on the small surface that saved him from dying.  
  
"I've had better days." Ephram completed standing, but grabbed the wall immediately.  
  
"What's wrong?" Jake yelled down.  
  
"I think the ledge moved." Ephram wasn't joking then, either.  
  
"It was just you, you're probably dizzy, so it seemed like it was." Jake responded.  
  
Ephram quickly remember that he was talking to his father on the phone earlier, and searched for the cell, "Amy, do you see your cell phone?"  
  
"Yeah, it's at the edge of the ledge!" Amy stopped for just a second, "Ha that rhymed!!" She laughed at herself.  
  
"This is no time to be Mother Goose, Amy' I was talking to my dad a few minutes ago." Ephram slowly turned around and reached for the phone, but stood back up again, grabbing onto the side of the mountain once more, "It moved again, and I KNOW it wasn't me this time!"  
  
The cell phone fell off the side, but Amy didn't see why. The wind was blowing, Ephram hadn't gotten near touching it, and she was convinced that Ephram was just dizzy, and that the ledge wasn't moving. If she had only listened to Ephram, it might have worked out safely in the end.  
  
******  
  
Dr. Andrew Brown was still on the phone trying to get Ephram's attention. He knew his son was awake, because he could hear him talking. He was yelling in the phone, until he heard a loud crash over the phone, and then the dial tone. He thought the worst, that Ephram had fallen off and the phone went with him. But that didn't make any sense, so he just that the phone fell. He stuck with that theory as he went to update the rest of the people waiting in the next room.  
  
******  
  
Ephram stayed clinging to the side of the mountain, no matter what anyone above him said. He blocked everyone out, and prayed that the platform wouldn't crumble under him.  
  
He eventually looked up and saw that Jake was being lowered toward him. He was glad when he could almost touch Jake's foot, but his prayer had been said too late. The ledge shifted drastically beneath him, and he knew he would be rescued by Jake. Ephram tried reaching for Jake's foot, but he couldn't quite make it.  
  
"Jake, help him!" Amy saw the ground below Ephram move, "The ledge is about to fall!" She had faith in Jake, just like in so many other things, but she didn't know how this would turn out. She wished she had listened to Ephram before, when he said the ground was moving.  
  
Jake looked down and saw that the ledge was in a different position than before, "Hold on, Ephram!" He yelled down.  
  
"What do you think I'm trying to do? I'm not hugging the mountain!" Ephram was getting royally pissed that Jake was telling him to do things he already knew how to do.  
  
Jake reached down for Ephram, and was just about to him, but didn't quite make it all the way. "Abby, get me lower!" Jake was moved even closer to Ephram, and he thought he would be able to reach him, and then he heard the helicopter.  
  
Jake wished with all his heart he hadn't told his partner to call them. He had no way to tell them to back off, and he knew he wouldn't be able to reach Ephram in time. They were already too close. He saw it rounding a mountain close by, and tried to wave it off, but that didn't do any good.  
  
The copter reached the point of no return when they were about thirty feet away from Jake and Ephram, the blades a safe distance away. Jake felt himself being taken back up, but that was because Abby was trying to take cover FROM the blades. He tried yelling and making her stop, but she couldn't hear him over the flying monster. He looked back down at Ephram, who looked very concerned, and signaled for him to jump.  
  
******  
  
Ephram knew it wasn't a good idea, but it was his only choice. The wind from the helicopter was making Ephram AND the ledge more unstable, so he knew what he had to do. He bent down, realizing his legs were very sore, and jumped up towards Jake.  
  
He almost reached his foot, but hit the rocky ledge again and slipped. Ephram felt himself falling, but grabbed onto the side again. The ledge was still connected, and he was still standing. He could feel the small area giving way, and was afraid to jump again.  
  
He didn't want to fall, but also didn't want to jump, because if he missed again, he knew he WOULD fall. The wind from the copter was beginning to be to much for Ephram, and he was losing his footing.  
  
At that moment, Ephram made the fastest decision of his entire life.  
  
TBC!! 


	5. So Close Yet So Far

Hanging by a moment  
  
Disclaimer: I do not own Everwood or any of the characters in this story. They are all property of the WB.  
  
Rating: PG  
  
A/N: Amy and Ephram go on a hike, but when it takes a turn for the worse, what will Amy do to help?  
  
  
  
Ephram repeated his last step, except in a different direction. He jumped toward the copter, which he knew was probably another bad idea, but he also knew he wouldn't make it to Jake, either.  
  
His expectations were right; he didn't make it to the guy holding out his arms in the helicopter. He grabbed at air, hoping angels would be sent from heaven to catch him and carry him to safety. He didn't want to die, but he feared that was what was coming.  
  
He now knew what everybody meant on television when they say, "I just saw my life flash before my eyes!" Ephram saw everything he could ever remember. It was like he was living it all over again.  
  
**Flashback**  
  
Ephram was playing tag with a five year old Delia in a park in California. His dad had ACTUALLY taken time off work to spend time with the family. But Ephram was once again let down when his dad spent the whole vacation talking on his cell phone.  
  
"Daddy, come play with us!" Ephram would remember saying. But his dad only held up his finger to say hold on a minute. That minute never came. Ephram would feel Delia tug at his sleeve and look up at him, "What do you want?" He wasn't sounding rude.  
  
"YOU'RE IT!" Delia would say in a squeaking voice. Ephram ran after her, and then it would all go away again.  
  
**Another FB**  
  
Ephram was sitting in the kitchen with his mom and Delia. They were making Christmas cookies and singing songs, even though Ephram couldn't sing very well back then. He was eleven, and Delia was five. It was later in the year after the park.  
  
"I'm sorry Ephram; your dad won't be home until late tonight. We'll have to wait until tomorrow to open a present." Julia was frosting a snowman cookie, and humming Joy to the World.  
  
He let out a big sigh, "Okay, I guess that's alright." It was Christmas Eve, and they always tried to open at least one present that day, but Dr. Brown had been busy the whole day. Ephram didn't understand why his dad's patients came before his family, but it was always that way.  
  
Ephram learned to deal with it, and Delia wasn't old enough to understand. All she understood was how to put frosting all over a cookie, and her face. She was attempting to put frosting on a reindeer, but it wasn't going as well as she had planned.  
  
Delia didn't mind, though. She made up for it by successfully putting it in her mouth. Ephram always loved it when Delia would frost the cookies; it made him laugh every time.  
  
Oh how he wished he could be doing that right now.  
  
**Next**  
  
Ephram was thirteen, and he considered himself a 'big boy.' He would act all macho in school, and pretend he was able to drive his friends around in mom's car while they were over, when it was parked out in the driveway. But whenever he got away from his buddies, he would be the same old Ephram.  
  
He would sit and talk with his mom, and tell her how his day went. Like he was doing today, he had failed a math quiz, and was very upset about it. His mom had made some cookies, and poured some milk. He knew it was childish, but he never cared.  
  
She gave him a big hug, and then, after he put his milk back on the table, she tickled him until it made him hurt. He missed that about his mom, and then he began to realize that his dad was hardly in any of his memories.  
  
**Next**  
  
The one time Ephram can remember his dad being home, is when he accidentally dropped the '#1 Dad!' cup he picked out for his father when he was six. He was nine, Delia's age, when it happened. His dad didn't yell at him, or punish him. He just asked Ephram nicely if he would help clean up the broken glass.  
  
Afterward, Andy would sit Ephram on his knee, and ask him, "Why did you have that out anyway?"  
  
"I was going to get you a glass of milk and some cookies. Mom told me you had had a bad day, and that's what she always gets me when I'm upset, so I wanted to make you feel better." Ephram felt tears in his eyes and his dad just laughed quietly and gave him a hug.  
  
"I appreciate the thought, Ephram, but I don't think that will help me through this. You'll understand when you get older. I'm going to go take a nap now, but I'll see you later, kiddo." Ephram's dad then stood up and walked to his bedroom.  
  
The next time Ephram saw him he was getting yelled at. But now Ephram didn't care. He would like to be getting yelled at right now, he wanted to be anywhere but there.  
  
**End Flashbacks**  
  
******  
  
Nina ran into the Abbott's house, "Oh Andy, are you alright? I just heard the news about Ephram! Is he okay?" She embraced a crying Andy.  
  
"We don't know. I was talking to him a while ago, but then he just stopped. I heard him again after a minute, but he was talking to someone else, and then all of a sudden it was a loud crash, and the dial tone." Andy didn't realize Delia was in the room. But he saw her out of the corner of his eye and turned to the young girl.  
  
"Daddy, no!" Delia grabbed her father's waist, with no intentions of letting go.  
  
"Oh, Delia sweetie, this doesn't mean anything. Ephram probably just dropped the phone and it broke. I'm sure he's fine." Even if he knew what was really going on with his son, he wouldn't have told Delia. He wouldn't put her through that. Who knows if even HE would be able to be put through that?  
  
******  
  
"Ephram don't!" That's all Amy remembers screaming before her friend jumped. She saw him miss his only opportunity to live, and could stay standing any longer. She passed out before Ephram even knew what was going on.  
  
******  
  
Ephram grabbed for the ledge when he realized he hadn't passed it yet. The memories went by faster than he had thought. His right hand managed to grab hold of it just in time. He was thankful for that, but also knew it would hold him for long. Someone had to come up with a plan to get him to safety, fast.  
  
Ephram didn't care whether it was Jake or the guys in the copter...Or even Amy, who he couldn't see any longer. He just wanted to be home, in his bed, safe and warm. He wanted to see he sister and dad again.  
  
Although he wanted to see his mother again, he didn't mean like this. He wanted to see her alive again, not by him dying. He wanted her to be there for him at this exact moment. For her to reassure him that everything was going to be okay, but he didn't know if that was how it was going to turn out.  
  
  
  
How DOES it turn out? Review and make suggestions. I'm not saying I will use them, I'm just saying I will take them. I hope you've enjoyed it so far, keep coming back, it's almost over! Review now. 


	6. Going home, Losing faith

Hanging by a moment  
  
Disclaimer: I do not own Everwood or any of the characters in this story. They are all property of the WB.  
  
Rating: PG  
  
A/N: Amy and Ephram go on a hike, but when it takes a turn for the worse, what will Amy do to help?  
  
  
  
The helicopter moved in as close as the pilot dared. They were nowhere near being able to save Ephram, but it made him feel better that they were trying. Even if he knew he wasn't going to be saved in time.  
  
Jake started tugging at the rope attached to him. He was trying to get more rope, even though there was none. He kept pulling, not stopping until he actually moved. He didn't know why, but Amy did. She had woken up only moments earlier.  
  
She knew that the tree she had tied Ephram to wasn't going to be strong enough to hold another rope, and Jake to boot. It was a small tree, and it had been hit by the rockslide. It was being pulled up by its roots, and it was coming up fast. If Jake could save Ephram, they would have two people to save.  
  
"Abby, I think you should know something." Amy explained about the tree, and how it wasn't going to last much longer, much like Ephram's situation.  
  
He wasn't going to be able to last much longer, either. But he was determined to hang on as long as possible, however long that was. His fingers were becoming intensely sore, much like the rest of his body. He knew the end was coming, whether it was by being saved, or by falling, it was coming.  
  
Ephram wanted to pull himself up, back onto the ledge, but he knew that wasn't possible, because, for one, he was too weak, and for two, the ledge would break before he made it up.  
  
He said a started thinking, but was interrupted by Jake, screaming, "I have to go back up, Ephram! Something is wrong up there, and I keep coming further down! I will be back down with more rope soon! Just hang on!" Jake was being lifted back up to the top. Ephram wished that was him in that position. He wanted to be back on solid ground.  
  
Ephram felt himself begin to cry, and his vision was becoming quite blurry. But he had to hang on, and he was going to, no matter what.  
  
******  
  
Delia sat in a corner of the Abbott's house, all by herself. She didn't want to be bothered, but someone came to try and make her feel better anyway.  
  
"Delia, do you want to talk about it?" Bright walked over to her, once he found her.  
  
"No, I don't want to talk to anybody, especially not you." Delia was still mad at him for telling her what could possibly happen to her brother.  
  
Bright sighed, but didn't leave, "Look, I know you're mad at me for the things I said, but I think you should know I wasn't joking. If they are on that mountain, which we now know they are by what Amy told my dad, those are possibilities." Bright knelt down to Delia's level, "I didn't mean to scare you, kiddo, I just want to prepare you for the worst. If the worst doesn't happen to Ephram, then it won't matter, but if I don't tell you, and it does, you would get very upset..."  
  
"No I wouldn't!" Delia snapped at him.  
  
"Okay, maybe you wouldn't, but let's just say you would, if that happened. I don't want to see you upset, and neither does your dad. I know Ephram wouldn't want you to be sad for him; he would want you to be happy. So, just hear me out, and let me explain to you the minor possibilities. Ephram can't get hurt too bad, depending on where he fell to. I don't know all the facts, but here it goes."  
  
Bright started explaining to Delia all of the minor, and major things that could happen to Ephram. Most of the minor things had already happened to him, but Bright didn't know that, neither did anyone else.  
  
******  
  
"What are you doing?" Amy asked as she saw Jake being brought back up, "Why are you bringing him back? He has to help Ephram!" She was becoming frantic, so one of the other guys in uniform held her back from the edge.  
  
"I understand why you are upset, Amy. But we don't want to have to save both Ephram and Jake, you said so yourself. If we can get Jake harnessed to something safer, then we will stand a better chance at saving Ephram."  
  
"Fine, I guess that makes sense, just hurry up!" Amy pulled away from the guy, and walked about ten feet to be alone.  
  
The only reason she stopped was because she saw the helicopter flying away, "Now what are THEY doing!?!" Amy had to yell over all the noise.  
  
"You will understand once Jake is lowered back down. They have extra rope we can use, but we can't get to it just yet. They have to land at the bottom of the mountain so we can get it." Abby told Amy just what she didn't want to hear.  
  
"The bottom of the mountain is two whole hours from here! They won't ever get it up here in time!" The sun was beginning to set, which worried Amy even more. It meant that it was going to get even colder, and that wasn't good for Ephram. He had only a light jacket on, and it was cold enough already.  
  
"We need to get you home, Amy." Amy gave Jake a shocked look, "I know that is the last thing you want to do right now, but we have to get you warm, and I'm sure your family will be extremely happy to see you." Jake had a guy with the name 'Thomas' on his jumper walk Amy to the bottom of the mountain. They would have someone waiting for her to take her home from there.  
  
Amy wasn't happy about it, but she knew it was probably best. She told Ephram what was going on, and told him that everything was going to be okay. He smiled weakly, but kept hanging on. She blew him a kiss, got up, and started walking with Thomas to the bottom.  
  
******  
  
Mrs. Abbott hung up the phone, turned around and smiled, "Amy is on her way home!" Harold embraced her in a hug, and they both smiled together.  
  
Andy stood up and walked out of the room. He was glad Amy was safe, but he wanted his son back. He really wanted to be able to talk to him, and tell him how much he loves him again. But he was also thankful Amy was coming back, because he would be able to get more facts about what was going on with his son.  
  
Nina walked into the room, "I'm so sorry, Andy. I really wish they could both be coming back, but I just heard Mrs. Abbott say that Ephram was alright. Amy wouldn't tell her much, but she said that he was close to being rescued." In her heart, Nina had her doubts, but she wasn't going to let Andy know that. She had to be strong for his and Delia's sake.  
  
"I'm sure he'll be fine, Nina. Ephram was always a strong boy. He has what it takes to survive. Although that was in New York, he's only been hiking once. I can't even remember how long ago that was." Andy smiled, but a tear escaped from him, and that's what made the flood gates open. "Oh Nina, I can't do this anymore! My son is hanging on for dear life on a mountain he's never stepped foot on before. I don't know for certain whether he's dead or alive, and if he is even going to be alright if he does survive!" Andy sat down on the steps and began to cry, "I want my son back, Nina. I want to be able to hold him and cuddle him, and to be able to tell him everything I haven't been able to lately."  
  
Nina quickly sat at Andy's side, "I know, it's okay. Ephram will be home soon. Everything is going to be okay. Just let it all out."  
  
"I need my son back." Andy said in a squeaking whisper.  
  
******  
  
Delia was doing the same thing, only she was being held by Bright. She was crying, and had been for the past little while, just like she had done with her dad earlier that day. She didn't know that Amy was on her way back, and neither did Bright. But when they got the news, they were both happy that one of the two would be home safely.  
  
"I'm glad Amy is coming home. Even if it isn't Ephram, at least we know she's okay." Delia smiled at Bright, "I need to go find my dad."  
  
"Okay, squirt." Bright let her go and smiled as she walked off.  
  
"Thanks Bright!" He heard her say as she disappeared around the corner.  
  
Delia walked all through the house, finally coming to the entryway, where she found her father and Nina on the steps. Andy wasn't crying anymore, and he looked up when her heard small footsteps.  
  
"Delia, how are you doing?" Nina took her hand from Andy's.  
  
"I'm fine, now. What are you two doing?" Delia was getting suspicious of something.  
  
"I was just comforting your father. He's a little upset about Ephram's situation." Nina explained after Andy seemed to be at a loss of words.  
  
"Right..." Delia walked to the steps and sat in between the two of them, "Did you hear about Amy coming back?" Delia asked smiling.  
  
"Yeah, sweetheart, we heard. We can't wait for her to get here." Andy was trying not to cry in front of Delia.  
  
"It's okay to cry dad. You should have seen me a minute ago. Ask Bright, I couldn't stop." Delia leaned her head on his lap and just sat there waiting for Amy to come back home.  
  
******  
  
Amy sat in the car on her way home, thinking. 'I shouldn't have left Ephram. He needs me right now. I need to be with him...But I guess I can't change that now.' She sat in silence for a few minutes, then thought of something she wished she hadn't. 'What if they took me off the mountain because they knew they couldn't save Ephram, and they didn't want me to see him die? What if they were covering that up, and didn't want me to freak out and tell Ephram?'  
  
Amy began getting depressed. She had convinced herself that that was why they had made her leave Ephram. She was so worried for him, but knew there was nothing she could do.  
  
She had faith in many things, like that tree, and that boulder, but this time her faith had run out on her. Amy Abbott, for once in her entire lifetime, was losing faith.  
  
******  
  
'Amy's gone, and it's getting dark...I have nothing to help me get through this anymore!' Ephram thought to himself. He could feel energy rapidly draining from his body, but still he hung on. Jake was on his way down, and Ephram knew he was going to be saved.  
  
Or at least he thought he was until he felt the ledge breaking more severely. He tried to grab it with the other hand, but that action was too fast for the small lifeline of Ephram's. It split from the side and he started to fall.  
  
Ephram didn't pay any attention to anything, except that he was about to die. He wondered how long it would take him to get to the bottom.  
  
Ephram had no idea how fast he was thinking until he felt something grab onto him. He didn't even look at what was keeping him alive, the excitement was just too much for him. Everything turned to black. 


	7. Getting Closer, Yet Even Further

Hanging by a moment  
  
Disclaimer: I do not own Everwood or any of the characters in this story. They are all property of the WB.  
  
Rating: PG  
  
A/N: Amy and Ephram go on a hike, but when it takes a turn for the worse, what will Amy do to help?  
  
  
  
Jake sat in his harness looking down at Ephram. He was holding onto him with all of his might, trying not to let go, "Come on kid, don't do this to me. I can't pull you up when you're like this. WAKE UP!!" Nothing happened, and Jake knew that couldn't be good. Or maybe Ephram was just exhausted, and he couldn't stay awake anymore, so his body just shut down.  
  
Whatever the case may have been, Jake needed Ephram awake at that moment. He looked up at Abby, who was talking to the helicopter on the radio.  
  
She already had a plan.  
  
******  
  
"Yeah, I need you to return to where the kid is." She listened to the pilot say something, "No, you don't have time to refuel, we need you here now. The kid passed out right after Jake caught him, and we need him awake or we can't get him back up here."  
  
Abby stopped for another minute to look at the boulder she had tied the rope around. It was the same boulder Amy hid behind in the rockslide. The rope wasn't going to stay there for long, and Abby knew that. They had more time than they would have had with the tree, but Jake still needed Ephram awake.  
  
The only way they could think of to wake him up was to make some noise, louder than Jake's screaming. The helicopter would have to do. If Amy were there, she might have known what to do, but she wasn't. She was pulling onto her street, back in the middle of Everwood.  
  
******  
  
Amy looked out the window as the streetlights turned on. She wished Ephram could be seeing this, but he couldn't. All he could see was the back of his eyelids, although Amy didn't know that.  
  
She knew he had to be cold, with that small jacket on, and it getting increasingly darker outside. Even though there were so many things for her to be upset about that night, she had things to be thankful for, too.  
  
She was thankful that people like Jake and Abby were there with Ephram, and people like Ephram's family, and Amy's, were there when she got home. She pulled up in the driveway and was greeted by the smiles on her parent's faces.  
  
She was happy to see them, and, for once in her life, she was actually happy to see her brother too. Bright was sitting in a swing on the porch. He stood up when he saw the car pull up.  
  
When she got out her family came running towards her, glad that she was okay, and thankful that she was home. Amy's heart sank when Dr. Brown and Delia walked outside with Nina and Edna, Amy's grandmother, right behind them. She was in the middle of hugging her dad when she saw them.  
  
She stopped and looked right into Delia's eyes. They were big, and she looked very upset. It was obvious she had been crying, and so had Delia's father. Amy went straight to the both of them when they stepped down into the yard.  
  
She wanted to say something to make them feel better, but she couldn't think of anything comforting to say, so she didn't. It put her mind at ease when Dr. Brown looked at her and smiled.  
  
"I'm glad you're home Amy. I'm sure Ephram will be here soon." She looked up at him, trying not to cry. She knew she wouldn't be able to hold it in, so she just walked closer to him and gave him a hug.  
  
"I'm so sorry, Dr. Brown." Amy took a deep breath, "I'm sorry." That was all she could say, over and over again. She let tears roll down her face, not caring if anyone saw her. She knew it had to have been hard for the both of them, not having your son, or your brother around, but knowing where he was and how much danger he was in  
  
******  
  
It kept going through Ephram's head, that song,  
  
I'm hanging by a moment here with you, Letting go of all I've held onto, I'm standing here until you make me move, I'm hanging by a moment here with you.  
  
That's what kept him going. He knew Amy was singing that song for a reason, not just to calm herself down, and not to make Ephram mad because of the coincidence of the situation, but to tell him something. To let him know how things were between them.  
  
That's the reason he woke up. Well, that and because the helicopter was getting louder and louder as it advanced towards him.  
  
"There you go!" Ephram looked up at Jake smiling down. He was relieved to know he was still alive, with someone there with him. He remembered that Amy was gone, but he didn't really mind that. Ephram just wanted to go home.  
  
Jake looked at him and then yelled down, "I need you to work hard until we get back up there, Ephram! I promise you will be just fine!"  
  
The helicopter, once again, moved in as close as the pilot dared, but this time it didn't make Ephram feel all that safe. He didn't want to move knowing the blades were that close. He looked up at Jake and shook his head. There was no way he was going to budge with the monster machine there.  
  
Jake waved the copter away, and the pilot obeyed. He circled back past the mountain he first came around. Ephram took a deep breath, and carefully, as Jake pulled Ephram up, took step by step until his feet were placed firmly on the ledge, again.  
  
"What are you doing?" Ephram should have known the answer to that question, but he wasn't thinking too clearly.  
  
"As much as I would like to, I can't pull you up all the way by myself. I have an extra rope here, and I would like for you to tie it around yourself. I'll attach it to my rope, and I'll instruct you on how to get yourself up from there." Jake lowered a rope down to Ephram and started tying his end to the rope he was on.  
  
"Oh boy," Ephram muttered, "This should be fun." His hands were shaking from exhaustion and hunger, but he knew he had to keep going, "I've only done this once with my mom, how did I survive through that hike?"  
  
Then Ephram remembered what his mom told him to do if he fell like this. She had packed a rope in his backpack then, but she knew he wouldn't fall. She had told him if he landed on a place where he could safely stand and move, then he would need to wrap that rope around him. She explained to him that she had another rope with her, and that she would lower that end to him, so he could tie them together.  
  
Ephram knew that if he fell that time, she wouldn't have been able to lower the rope far enough to reach him, but the idea of her planning made him feel safer as they hiked. But he was thirteen then, not fifteen.  
  
She, after all of that, had told him that once the two ends were together, and she could pull him up, if he ever came close to hitting the side of anything, all he had to do is push off of it with his feet.  
  
This time that wouldn't be so easy, though. It was night out, and he could hardly see his hand in front of his face.  
  
Then Jake turned on a light. It was extremely bright to Ephram, but rather dim to Jake and Abby. None of them cared; all they wanted was for Ephram to be safely on the ground.  
  
All Ephram could hear was his mother speaking, and then he realized one thing. He was getting his wish. He was able to hear his mom again. He knew he was going to make it through this, even if he was going to HAVE to go to the hospital.  
  
Ephram could already see Delia's face, and his dad's smile. He was glad that he was finally going to be able to go home.  
  
Finally, after nearly nine hours of being on this wretched mountain, he would be safe and warm in his own bed. Well, after the hospital. Ephram didn't care as long as he could sleep peacefully.  
  
He was pulled out of his thoughts when he felt himself jolt downward a little. He frantically looked up at Jake, who was looking up at Abby. She was looking behind her, with some very bad news to tell whenever she turned around again.  
  
The knot was beginning to come loose in the rope around the boulder, and she knew she wouldn't be able to tie it back around, because Jake and Ephram together were much too heavy.  
  
Jake already knew what she was going to say, so he tried speeding Ephram up, "Come on kid! We don't have much further, you can do it!" Jake felt like he was encouraging himself instead of Ephram.  
  
"I know we don't have much further, but I don't know if I can do it!" Ephram didn't even stop to think how much he was hurting. He could hardly move a muscle without it aching horribly.  
  
The rope moved again, which made Ephram start to climb again. He had a bad feeling about that rope, and was beginning to get queasy. He could barely convince himself to keep going, but he managed.  
  
After what seemed like forever, Jake reached the top. Ephram, at that point, knew he had only inches left to go, so he felt safe already.  
  
******  
  
Amy had told everyone everything she knew up until the point the cliffhangers told her she was going home. She had cried so many time while telling them, and every time she got pats on the back and comforting words.  
  
"I'm really sorry you guys, but I have GOT to go to bed. I think you know why." Amy smiled as she walked toward the stairs.  
  
"Um, Amy," Dr. Brown stood up and walked over to her. She stopped, turning back around in the process, "I want to thank you for being there for my son today. I know he will be just fine. With a friend like you he has to be working hard."  
  
"Thanks Dr. Brown." Amy's smile grew bigger as she turned back around and walked up the stairs.  
  
******  
  
'I'm finally going home.' Ephram couldn't get that thought out of his head. He was so excited. He knew exactly what he was going to do first.  
  
'I'm going to get home, and I'm going to watch that movie with Del. I promised her, and even if it isn't tonight, I'm going to watch it with her!' He kept pushing himself further than he ever though he would make it.  
  
Ephram's hand touched the top of the mountain, and he could wait until his feet did the same.  
  
******  
  
Amy quickly and easily fell asleep after she reached her room. She fell into a deep sleep, and started to dream about different, peaceful things. That was something she never would have imagined doing after a day like this one.  
  
******  
  
Downstairs in the Abbott's living room, everyone, except for Edna who had gone back to her house, was talking and laughing about so many things they thought they would bust.  
  
Andy was thinking about Ephram, but kept a smile on his face every second. He wanted to be there for Delia. Andy knew she was having a very difficult time with all of this, and it wasn't getting any easier for her.  
  
Delia had been promised something, and with all of her heart wanted that promise to be kept, even if it wasn't that day or the next, or even that week, she wanted that promise kept.  
  
The only reason was because if it was, that meant Ephram was still alive. More than anything in the entire world, even more than her mother being with her and everyone else, Delia wanted her big brother to live through all the things that had happened to him.  
  
******  
  
"What's taking you so long, Ephram? You're almost to victory; you can make it the rest of the way!" Abby was getting impatient. Not because Ephram was taking so long, but because of the knot in the rope. It was steadily come loose, and she didn't want Ephram attached to it if that happened, "Hurry up!"  
  
"You have to give me a minute, I'm exhausted!" Ephram leaned back in his harness, putting even more pressure on the knot. He hadn't been told about it, so he didn't know to not do that, "Besides, what could happen now?"  
  
Jake wished those words had never come out of Ephram's mouth. He knew the problem that was at hand, but he didn't have the guts to tell him. Jake knew Ephram shouldn't have been leaning on the rope, but it didn't faze him until Ephram got ready to climb again and the knot loosened even more.  
  
He told himself it was no use now because the loosening had already been done. Jake was relieved Ephram was still alive at that point.  
  
"Okay, I'm coming up so you don't have to worry." Ephram painstakingly shifted his weight, got into his climbing position, again, and started upward.  
  
Ephram wouldn't make it all the way on that rope. He wouldn't put his feet on the ground when he wanted to, either. Because, just then, the knot loosened the slightest bit more.  
  
It unwrapped around the boulder and Ephram was no longer safe. He started to fall one last time. 


	8. At the Top

Hanging by a moment  
  
Disclaimer: I do not own Everwood or any of the characters in this story. They are all property of the WB.  
  
Rating: PG  
  
A/N: Just to ease everyone's mind I thought I would post this chapter quickly, and I really didn't want to end it the way I did, but I don't know where to go with this whole Ephy...Thing. I will NOT ask for help, I get to decide. Please read past the end of the chapter to the added note.  
  
  
  
Amy quickly sat up in bed screaming, until she realized she was home safe. Her father ran in a few seconds later.  
  
"Amy, honey, what's wrong?" Dr. Abbott scooted a chair over to Amy's bed and sat down.  
  
"Uh, nothing daddy, everything is fine." Amy was catching her breath, trying to figure out what was real and what was just a dream.  
  
"Are you sure? Because after everything that has gone on today, I don't know."  
  
Then she realized nothing had been a dream. She was hoping Ephram was okay, safe and warm in his own bed back home. But instead he was in danger of falling, "I don't know yet, dad. Do we know if Ephram is okay or not?"  
  
"No, nothing yet," Harold looked at the floor, and then back to his daughter, "For all we know, he's dea...Nevermind."  
  
"You were going to say dead, weren't you?" Amy lay back in bed, turning her back to the man she wished she never knew, "You never did like Ephram, daddy. Why?"  
  
Dr. Abbott was shocked by this question. He never thought about how Amy would react to his displeasing looks at the Brown boy, "Um...I uh..." He wasn't trying to cover the truth; he was just trying to buy himself more time, so he could make his reason sound better. It didn't do any good.  
  
"Don't lie to me dad, I want to know, now please." Amy kept her face turned away.  
  
"Amy, first thing's first, you don't talk to me like that, you know better. And second...Well, second is going to sound really stupid. "I guess I never liked Ephram because, he...He looked like a charmer. Like the kind of guy who could take my little girl away from me at any minute. I guess I just didn't want that to happen, and neither did your brother, so don't go interrogating him now, too."  
  
Dr. Abbott stood up, put the chair back in its place, and walked out of the room. Amy turned around, only to see her father's shadow dancing down the lighted hallway.  
  
Amy then looked back to the wall, and whispered, "If you only knew what a charmer he was."  
  
******  
  
Abby watched in horror as Ephram's eyes got wide, and his hand fell from the side. She didn't want to have to explain what had happened to him, or how close he was to getting to safety.  
  
Jake didn't either, and he wasn't going to, "I don't think so kid!" Jake reached for Ephram's hand, the one that had reached the top, and tightened his grip.  
  
******  
  
Dr. Abbott walked back into the living room with everyone staring at him, waiting for an explanation on Amy's scream, "She's fine, she probably just had a nightmare." There was no way he was going to tell them what else happened up there.  
  
"I see," Andy was skeptical, but didn't ask any questions, "Are you alright Dr. Abbott?"  
  
"Yes, Dr. Brown, I'm perfectly fine. I guess it's just that I'm worried about your son, for some reason." Harold sat next to his wife on the couch. He gave her a kiss on the head, and held her hand. He looked into her eyes and softly spoke with a smile, "Our little girl is going to be just fine."  
  
******  
  
Ephram's body hit violently up against the side of the mountain as Jake held his hand, keeping him from plummeting to his death.  
  
Ephram's left arm had hit pretty hard, and so had his head, mainly his face. He could see blood dripping from his forehead, which at that point, he didn't much care about.  
  
"Come on Ephram, you're almost there!" Jake looked over at Abby, who was just sitting there, "Could I get a little help here? I can barely hold him!"  
  
Abby quickly snapped back into reality, and leaned over the edge, "Give me your other hand, Ephram!"  
  
"I wish I could, but I can't even move it." Ephram was trying hard, but it hurt too much for him to even move his finger, imagine what it was like for the whole arm.  
  
"Ephram," Jake knew Ephram would hate him after this, but it was the only way to save him, "I know this isn't easy, but if you want to survive, you have to give Abby your other hand."  
  
Ephram breathed heavily for a few seconds, and then worked up the strength to lift his arm up above his head; Abby would have to do the rest. He wasn't screaming, but tears were rolling down his cheeks.  
  
Abby grabbed his left hand, looked at Jake, and, together, the two of them pulled.  
  
"AAAAHHHHHHH!" Now Ephram was screaming. He couldn't keep the pain he had been feeling all day inside anymore. He tried to stop, but he was still whimpering a little, "Hurry up guys." Ephram gritted his teeth while he spoke, "I can't do this much longer!"  
  
Ephram got to the point where he could help, and so he put his feet up against the side of the mountain, and climbed up the rest of the way. The second Ephram's feet hit the solid ground his legs fell from under him. He couldn't stay standing any longer.  
  
Jake and Abby were cheering and hugging so much, they didn't realize he had fallen to the ground. When Jake looked down, Ephram had already passed out.  
  
******  
  
Practically everyone in the Abbott house was asleep. Delia was asleep in a chair, Bright had gone up to his bed, Andy was on one side of the couch, and Dr. and Mrs. Abbott were one the other. Nina had gone home.  
  
You realize I said PRACTICALLY everyone. Amy was still awake. Her eyes focusing on the ceiling, counting the little dots the plaster had made.  
  
Even though the phone rang, nobody downstairs woke up. Amy shot out of bed and ran to her desk, "Hello?" She picked the small blue phone up.  
  
She sat for a minute listening to some guy she had never heard before. After hearing certain words, her eyes got wide, and she didn't care to listen anymore. She took the phone from her ear and ran down the hall with it.  
  
She stopped at Bright's door when she saw he was in bed, "Bright, you need to come downstairs." Amy was trying to stay as calm as possible.  
  
"Why?" He was half awake.  
  
"Because, it's about Ephram!" Amy ran down the stairs and quietly entered the living room when she saw everyone sleeping peacefully.  
  
Bright immediately followed her once he realized what she had said, "Guys, wake up." Bright was clapping, making everyone jump.  
  
"What has gotten into you, Bright?" Mrs. Abbott looked at her son, disgusted with his behavior.  
  
"It's not me, mom, it's Amy. She told me she has some news about Ephram." Bright was hoping for the best, but expecting the worst.  
  
Everyone's attention turned towards Amy after Bright finished his sentence. "Well, go on, what is it?" Delia wanted to know more than anybody in the room, or so it seemed.  
  
"I guess no one heard the phone a minute ago." Amy looked at Dr. Brown, and then to everyone else, they were shaking there heads. They hadn't heard a sound, "Okay, I guess not. Anyway, some guy just called, and I've got some good news." She was trying to throw them off, "Jake and Abby apparently had Ephram really close to the top, but the rope came untied, and they almost lost Ephram." She couldn't keep it in anymore, "Ephram is being flown to the hospital in Denver as we speak!"  
  
Dr. Brown stood up as fast as he could, got his and Delia's coats, and then walked back to the couch, "I'm sorry everyone, but I have to go somewhere. My son needs me." He handed Delia her coat, and they both walked out the door.  
  
The Abbott family was just sitting still for the next few minutes, Amy the only one standing. The room was quiet, so quiet they now knew what everyone meant by, 'You could hear a pin drop.'  
  
Bright looked around the room, meeting his sisters gaze last. She was impatiently wiggling around, Bright smiled at her, "Do you want to go?" Amy nodded her head and just about as fast as Andy and Delia, they were gone.  
  
Now it was down to two, Mrs. Abbott looked at her husband hopefully. She was trying to tell him something. Dr. Abbott looked at her, and then laughed, "We should follow them." They, just like everyone else, were gone almost instantly.  
  
******  
  
Dr. Brown drove to his house, but didn't go inside. Instead, he ran over to Nina's. He knocked on the door and was greeted by a tired looking Nina, "Andy, what are you doing here? Shouldn't you be at the Abbott's?" She then realized there was a reason her neighbor was there, "Where is Ephram?"  
  
Andy took Nina by the hand and dragged her out the door, he never said a word. He opened the car door, and patiently waited for her to get in.  
  
"Did you hear about Ephram?" Delia piped up when she saw Nina.  
  
"No, how is he?" At least someone would tell her.  
  
"Well, I'm not sure how he is, but they flew him to the hospital. Ephram isn't on that mountain anymore!" Delia was so excited. She wanted to see her brother, and more than anything, give him the biggest hug ever.  
  
"Amy told us she had gotten a call from someone telling her Ephram was being taken there, and I didn't really stick around to hear the rest." Andy looked at Nina in the rearview mirror, since Delia was up front.  
  
"Well that's great! Do you know what condition he's in?" Delia was just as curious about that question, but Nina asked it first.  
  
Andy paused for a minute, and then fear rushed through his entire body, "No, I don't. I wonder Amy didn't tell us." So many things ran through his head, he didn't want to be thinking about any of them.  
  
"Daddy, maybe she didn't tell you for a reason." Delia was trying to make him feel better. After all, he was the one driving.  
  
"Maybe that isn't the case." Nina put her hand on Andy's shoulder, "Maybe, for a reason, nobody told her." * * * * * Just to let everyone know, I DO realize the nickname Grover is Amy's and not Ephram's. The only reason I made that little mistake is because I missed that ONE episode whenever it came on. I don't know why. So, if you don't mind, please quit reviewing me to tell me about that mess up. But thanks for all the great reviews, too! I really appreciate them all.  
  
p.s. I love you too, Monkey! 


	9. At the Hospital

Hanging by a moment  
  
Disclaimer: I do not own Everwood or any of the characters in this story. They are all property of the WB.  
  
Rating: PG  
  
  
  
Dr. Brown pulled into the hospital parking lot about three hours later. They all immediately unbuckled and got out of the car as soon as it stopped.  
  
When they got inside, Andy went straight to the front desk, Nina stayed with Delia in the waiting room.  
  
"Excuse me," Dr. Brown looked at the young girl in the seat behind the desk, "My son was flown here a few hours ago, and I was wondering if you could give me some information about him."  
  
"Well," She started, "First I will need some information from you. Like your sons name."  
  
Dr. Brown felt stupid for not remembering that, but he was very tired, "Ephram Brown." He answered.  
  
The girl searched through some papers, and then looked on her computer, "I'm sorry Mr. Brown..."  
  
"Dr. Brown." Amy walked up beside him, "His name is Dr. Brown." She smiled in his direction.  
  
"Oh, whatever," She had one of those high pitched voices that was beginning to get on Andy's nerves, "I can't give you any information right now, because I don't have any. All I know is he was brought in here in critical condition." She looked at Amy this time, "If you two will go sit in the waiting room, I'm sure a doctor will be with you shortly."  
  
Andy couldn't believe what he was hearing. He didn't want to sit down; he wanted to see his son. He was almost positive someone would know something about Ephram by now.  
  
Before he had time to think of anything to say or do, Amy was twenty steps ahead of him, "I'm sorry, maybe I didn't make myself clear. I said this is Dr. Brown. Dr. Andrew Brown. And he has a son here, who needs him more than you will EVER KNOW!" Amy looked back at Delia and pointed to her, "Do you see that girl right there? That is Delia Brown, Ephram's sister. She wants to see her brother because she misses him. My name is Amy Abbott, and Ephram is my best friend, I was on that mountain with him, and I would really like to see how he is. I would imagine, if you were a good nurse, you would have some information, or at least would be able to find some, since Ephram HAS been here for three hours already!" Amy started raising her voice, "Now, if you don't get off your lazy butt and find someone to help us out, I will personally go through all of these halls and find Ephram myself! Do I make myself clear!?!"  
  
Dr. Brown looked at Amy, and then at Bright who was shocked at what his sister had just done, "Amy honey, I think she got the message." Andy turned Amy away and scooted her toward the waiting area. He turned back to the nurse and gave her a look that meant, 'Go before she does it again!' The nurse understood and scurried off to see if she could get any info.  
  
"Daddy," Delia walked over to him, "Where is Ephram?"  
  
"He's around here somewhere, Delia. That nurse just went to go see if she can find him." Andy didn't know how to tell her what he had been told, so he just walked with her back to a chair.  
  
******  
  
Ephram could hear noises like people running around, and whispering, before he even opened his eyes. He slowly lifted his eyes lids and looked around the room.  
  
"Doctor, he's awake." A nurse with dark brown hair and brown eyes looked at Ephram with concern.  
  
"Where am I?" Ephram painfully asked. Every time he too a breath, it felt like bricks were being placed on his chest, one after another.  
  
"You are at _______ hospital. You were on a mountain for a while and we had to have someone rescue you."  
  
Ephram interrupted her, "I know that much," He winced as he spoke, "I just wanted to know where I was."  
  
"Hello Ephram. My name is Doctor Taylor; I understand you went hiking today. Did you have fun?" A man no older than thirty walked to Ephram bedside.  
  
"Where is Jake?" Ephram wanted to see Jake again, because he wanted a familiar face with him, "Is my family here? Where's Amy?" Ephram was getting tired, but he didn't know the doctor had given him a sedative that would make him go back to sleep.  
  
"I'm sure everyone will be here soon." The nurse tried to calm him down, but Ephram just wanted to see his dad and Delia again.  
  
"Where is my sister? I promised her I would watch that movie with her, I have to keep that promise. I have to." That was the last thing Ephram said before he went back to sleep.  
  
******  
  
"Dr. Brown, Your son is doing better now, but they have to take him to surgery." That same annoying, high pitched nurse returned to the front desk, where Andy and Nina were patiently waiting.  
  
"Why is he in surgery?" Dr. Brown wanted to see Ephram and know that he was okay.  
  
"Well, apparently when he fell from that rope, he landed on some sharp rock which made him bleed internally. He should be out soon. The doctor will come when you can see him, I promise.  
  
******  
  
The rest of the Abbott family had arrived a few minutes after Amy and Bright. Amy was reading to a very sleepy Delia, and Bright was getting some candy for her. He pushed the button for a 3 Musketeer bar, but it got stuck.  
  
Bright didn't want to upset Delia, and he didn't want to lose his money, so he hit the window hard. He didn't know it was glass, and he didn't realize he hit it that hard, but he broke through, and immediately felt an excruciating pain shoot through his hand. He screamed and jerked his hand back out of the break he had made in the glass.  
  
A nurse, and Dr Abbott, came running as fast as they could. Bright looked at his dad and started shaking his head, "I didn't know that thing was glass. I just wanted to get some candy for Delia." Tears began falling down Bright's face because he was in so much pain, "She asked me to, so I did. It got stuck after I put my money in, so I hit the glass. I guess I hit it harder than I had thought."  
  
He was talking so fast Dr. Abbot could barely understand him, "Slow down, son. You'll be fine." He looked at the concerned nurse, "Could you do something about his hand, it looks painful, and I can't stand to see him like this."  
  
The nurse smiled and nodded as she took Bright to a small room to take care of him. Dr. Brown walked over to where Amy was now covering Delia up with her jacket. The small girl was asleep.  
  
"Amy, your brother had a little accident, it looks like you have to watch Delia for now." Harold laughed at the thought of what Bright did.  
  
"What happened?" Amy stood from her kneeling position.  
  
"He should be fine; he just broke through some glass on that candy machine and cut his hand pretty deep. I'm sure he will be back to help you soon." Amy smiled and then sat across from Delia.  
  
******  
  
2 hrs later  
  
"Dr. Brown?" A young man in scrubs walked into the waiting room, Dr. Brown stood when he heard his name called, "My name is Dr. Kyle Taylor, I'm your son's doctor."  
  
"How is Ephram?" Dr. Brown sat back down, suddenly getting light headed.  
  
"He should be fine, but there still isn't any way to be sure. He's been out of surgery for only a few minutes, so he hasn't had a chance to wake up. We should know once that happens, or a few hours after he does, anyway."  
  
"Can I go see him?" Dr. Brown looked over at Delia. She looked like a little angel covered with Amy's jacket.  
  
"In about thirty minutes you and your daughter can go in. Right now, I need Amy Abbott." The doctor looked around the room until Amy stood.  
  
"What do you need me for?" Amy walked next to Andy.  
  
"Even though Ephram is asleep, he has been saying only one thing, and that was 'Where is Amy?' I think you and Dr. Brown should be the ones there when he wakes up." The doctor walked out of that area, and then waited for them both to follow him.  
  
Amy didn't understand why she was going to see Ephram, even if she really wanted to. But she did what she was asked to do, and that was go see Ephram. She walked down winding hallways and past deserted rooms. They finally stopped at room 189. A small sign under it said 'Ephram Brown and Robert Hayes'  
  
Amy guessed that was the guy rooming with Ephram, "Go on in, he's awake now." Dr. Taylor stood outside the door, not intending to go in.  
  
"Oh, okay." Amy hesitantly followed Dr. Brown into the small stuffy room. The first things she saw were all the tubes hooked to Ephram. She felt absolutely horrible, like she was responsible for this happening. She knew she was.  
  
Ephram smiled weakly when he saw his dad, and tried smiling even bigger when Amy came into sight, but didn't have the strength, "Hey guys," He softly whispered, "How are you?"  
  
"I think it's safe to say we're better than you." Andy joked as he grabbed a chair and pulled it beside Ephram's bed, "How are you feeling?"  
  
"I feel tired, and my whole body hurts, especially my left arm, and I have tubes all over the place, and I am really thirsty, but other than that I'm great." He smiled a bit bigger when Amy laughed a little, "What did I miss?"  
  
"I think I'll let Amy tell you. I'll leave the two of you alone." Dr. Brown stood up and headed for the door.  
  
"No, Dr. Brown, please don't leave." Amy grabbed him by the arm.  
  
"It's for the best, Amy. I think you need to talk to him." Andy opened the door and walked out before Amy had a chance to say anything else.  
  
She slowly walked toward Ephram's bed, sitting in the chair Andy just vacated. She and Ephram stayed in silence for a few minutes, until Amy just couldn't take it anymore.  
  
"Ephram I am so sorry this happened to you. I didn't mean for you to get hurt on that hike."  
  
"Oh yeah, because I'm sure you put that dirt there just for me to slip on." Ephram was just kidding, but it made Amy cry, "Amy, I didn't mean to upset you, I was only kidding." Ephram wanted to reach over and wipe the tear away, but because of everything hooked to him, he could barely move.  
  
"It wasn't what you said, Ephram. It's what I did. I asked you to join me on this hike, and I wanted to be able to talk to you and stuff, but instead I nearly got you killed." Amy burst into tears now, "You could've been dead right now if it weren't for Jake and Abby."  
  
"But I'm not, Amy. I'm not dead. I'm fine, okay. I'm not going anywhere, I promise." Ephram actually reached over and put his hand in hers this time, but he was in pain no matter what he did.  
  
"It's just the thought of it, Ephram. The thought of you..."  
  
"Then don't think about it." Ephram smiled, "If you don't think about it, you don't have to worry. Nothing is wrong with me, I'm fine now." He closed his eyes and took a deep breath.  
  
"I know, I'm glad you're okay, it's just that if anything had happened to you, I don't know what I would have done. I could have lost you today, and your family could have, too." Amy looked up at Ephram, who still had his eyes closed. She didn't think anything of it at the time, "Delia is so cute when she sleeps. Oh, I forgot to tell you about Bright. He put his hand through one of those glass windows on a candy machine. He was trying to get a candy bar for Delia and it got stuck, he still hasn't come back."  
  
Ephram didn't make a move or even smile when that story was told. Amy stood up and looked at his face. She looked at the heart monitor, which was getting faster. She didn't know what that meant, but she knew it couldn't have been good.  
  
"Ephram, open your eyes." Amy said frantically, "Come on, Ephram, you're fine, remember? You just told me so!" All of a sudden the little bumps on the monitor turned into a long, flat line. The fast beeps drew out into one long, never ending one. Amy DID know what that meant, she ran out the door to get some help. Ephram's heart had stopped. 


	10. Seal it With a Kiss

Hanging by a moment  
  
Disclaimer: I do not own Everwood or any of the characters, except for Jake, Abby, and the doctors, those are mine. But everything else, they are all property of the WB.  
  
Rating: PG  
  
  
  
Ephram could feel himself draining fast, like water being sucked out of a bathtub. He could hear Amy talking, but her words were just small whispers that he couldn't understand. He knew what was coming next. He could see the 'bright light' but there wasn't any tunnel.  
  
It seemed to him that only seconds went by, but he knew otherwise when he felt an enormous shock hit his chest. That shock made it difficult for Ephram to breathe, until he realized he wasn't breathing.  
  
Another shock hit him, and this time it did some good. Ephram was getting further and further away from that light. He could feel life flowing back into his body, but still he couldn't breathe. No matter how hard he tried, nothing was coming in or out of his lungs.  
  
He tried one last time to take a deep breath, and it worked. Ephram sat up in bed gasping for air, coughing seemed to be the only thing coming though.  
  
"Ephram, Ephram you're okay. You're fine, sit back down." Andy put his hand on his son's shoulder, trying to calm him down. It was working.  
  
Ephram realized what was going on, and slumped back into the bed, "Dad, I was so scared." Ephram managed to say through small coughs.  
  
"I bet you were. We nearly lost you there." A doctor cut into the conversation, "We need to run some tests and see how this happened, but I'm sure Ephram will be fine."  
  
"No, I wasn't afraid of dying, I was afraid that I would never get to keep that promise I made to Delia." Talking came easier to Ephram now, he could breathe better, but something still felt weird.  
  
"Well, I'm sure you will be able to watch a movie with her sometime tomorrow." The doctor said, not letting Andy speak.  
  
"No, it can't be tomorrow, it has to be...Wait, what time is it?" Ephram had lost all track of time when he was on that mountain.  
  
"It's nearly eleven pm. Why?" The doctor asked.  
  
"Shoot," Ephram muttered, "I promised her I would watch a movie tonight. I have to watch a movie with her, now." Ephram was hoping there was someway he could keep his promise, but he knew it wouldn't happen.  
  
"I'm sorry son..."  
  
Ephram interrupted the doctor, "Don't call me son, you aren't my father."  
  
The doctor looked at Andy, who was smiling, "Okay, well I'm sorry, but there isn't any way we can let you keep that promise, because we have to get you all checked out, you don't want to scare your little sis like you did Amy, do you?"  
  
"Amy? Where is she?" Amy had completely slipped Ephram's mind. Although, most things had in the past few hours, "I have to see her, is she okay?" He started sitting up, but pressure was being put on his lungs, and he couldn't move any further. He winced in pain and slowly sat back down.  
  
"Are you okay, Ephram?" Andy stood up and walked to the side of Ephram's bed.  
  
"Huh? Oh, yeah I'm fine." Ephram didn't want to lie, but it sounded better than the truth at that point, "You didn't answer my question. Where is Amy?"  
  
"Amy is in the waiting room. You freaked her out when your heart stopped, she told me she didn't want to come back in here just yet, but I'm sure she'll be in here soon." Dr. Brown realized who he sounded like, that annoying little nurse at the front desk.  
  
"Oh, okay." Ephram looked at the door, hoping Amy would walk through at any minute, but he knew that wasn't going to happen. He looked over at the doctor, and saw that he was putting some kind of needle in his IV, "What are you doing?" Ephram hated needles.  
  
"I'm giving you a tranquilizer so you will go to sleep." The doctor answered.  
  
"I never would have guessed it did that." Ephram hated when people said dumb things like the doc just did, "Why are you giving it to me?"  
  
"Like I said, we have to check you out. It will be much easier if you are asleep."  
  
"Aren't you forgetting something? Isn't the patient supposed to go first? Why didn't you ask me? I don't want to go back to sleep. I'll dream I'm back on that mountain again." Ephram didn't want to sleep; he had done enough of that already. The tranquilizer worked faster than he thought it would, and he was asleep before he knew it.  
  
******  
  
Bright walked out of the room he had been taken into a few hours earlier a little drowsy, and really confused.  
  
"Bright are you okay?" Dr Abbott helped his son sit down, "I thought she was just going to stitch you up, not knock you out."  
  
"She did just stitch me up, but I squeaked...Freaked for some raisin...Uh, reason, and ran into a tray of medical surprise...Supplies...I meant supplies." Harold smiled at his son.  
  
"Maybe we should get you home. I think everyone should go home, including you Amy." Dr. and Mrs. Abbott gathered everybody's things and headed for the door, "Amy, come on, let's go."  
  
"No, I'm not leaving Ephram." Amy stayed in her seat next to Delia.  
  
"Amy," Nina got out of her seat and kneeled in front of Amy, "I think it would be best if you go home with your parents. You've had a long day. You need some rest."  
  
"But," Amy started crying a little, "I can't leave him. He promised me he would be okay, and I still have to tell him what happened to Bright because he didn't hear me the first time." She couldn't contain herself, the tears kept coming.  
  
"Amy, I know you are worried about Ephram, but I'm worried about you. You need to come home." Dr. Abbott grabbed her jacket from beside her as she stood from her chair, reluctantly, "I know it's hard, honey, but Nina will let you know if anything happens, right?"  
  
Nina looked at Amy, "Uh, yeah, of course. Now go and get some sleep."  
  
"Thanks Nina." Amy wiped a few tears away, and walked out the door being embraced by her mother.  
  
"Okay God," Nina sat back down, "You can start using your miraculous powers at any time now, and I'm not going stopping you." She sat there watching Delia sleep, until, eventually, she fell asleep herself.  
  
******  
  
It had been a few hours, and was being wheeled back into his room where his dad was waiting, "How is he?" Andy stood up and met Dr. Taylor in the middle of the room.  
  
"He'll be fine. Apparently we missed the fact that he had a few broken ribs, one so badly broken that it punctured a lung, but he's fine now." Dr. Taylor hated admitting that he had mad a major mistake, but Andy seemed to take it well.  
  
"How could you miss that, are you blind? My son was on a mountain for nine hours, and you didn't think to check and see if he had any broken ribs!?! I thought you were a doctor? You're supposed to check these things!" .....I said Andy took it well, not great, "I would like to spend time alone with my son if you don't mind." Andy walked back to his chair and sat down again.  
  
"Uh, yeah sure, no problem, he might not wake up for awhile, but you can stay here. I'm sure that's fine." Dr. Taylor walked out of the room, with the nurses he had walked in with following.  
  
"How come everyone is so sure about everything, and yet nobody is sure if Ephram is going to come out of this okay?" Andy sat thinking to himself as he watched Ephram sleep. He could remember so many times in his life, when he wasn't a famous neurosurgeon, when he was alone with Ephram, and his son would get into so many things.  
  
Like one time Ephram was playing in his room when he was three. He always liked to be alone, but Andy wouldn't allow it. He sat and watched Ephram play with his big Lego's and cars and trucks. He was so easily entertained by those things. He would ask his dad to play with him, and Andy would. They would laugh and play, and even have contests to see who could build the biggest towers, or whose car was the fastest.  
  
Andy missed those days. Soon Ephram would be driving real cars, and he wouldn't need his fathers help to get around anymore, not that he would need it in Everwood, since the town was so small.  
  
Andy wondered what had happened to that little boy with the toy cars. He had missed so many years of his life. Ephram was four and a half when Andy got really busy. He wanted all of those years back. He wanted to watch his son grow up, but it was too late for that now.  
  
Andy had missed the most important years of Ephram's life, his childhood. And it was all because he cared more about his patients than he did his own children.  
  
It was at that point that Andy knew Ephram had been right about a lot of things. Ephram had told him he cared more about patients, and he had been right. That was only one of many things Ephram had been right about, but Andy didn't have time to think about those, because Ephram was beginning to wake up.  
  
******  
  
Amy had been asleep for seven hours already, and she didn't show any signs of waking any time soon. Bright let her sleep; he knew she had to be tired after yesterday.  
  
It was about eight when the phone rang, and that was when Amy woke up. She ran to her desk, but her phone wasn't there. She remembered taking downstairs the night before when she told everyone about Ephram. She darted down the hall and then down the steps into the living room.  
  
The phone had already been answered by her father. He smiled at Amy when she walked into the room, "Come here sweetheart, there is someone here who wants to talk to you." Dr. Abbott handed her the phone.  
  
"Hello?" Amy put the phone up to her ear.  
  
"Hey Aims." A weak voice came from the other end. Amy immediately knew it was Ephram. She smiled from ear to ear.  
  
"Hey stranger, how are you?" Amy wanted him to be the way he was before they went hiking. No bruises or anything.  
  
"I've been better. Listen, I can't talk for long, doctor's orders, but I was just calling to tell you that I'm alright, and I would love it if you would come to the hospital later today." There was a small pause, "You don't have to come if you don't want to." Ephram said with a laugh.  
  
"Oh, no, I'll be there as soon as I can." Amy and Ephram said there goodbyes, and she was halfway up the steps before Dr. Abbott could say a single word.  
  
******  
  
Ephram had gone to sleep after getting off the phone with Amy. He wanted her to get there soon, and that was the only way he knew that could happen. Delia still hadn't seen him, and she wanted to see him, really badly.  
  
"He's asleep right now, Delia. You'll be able to see him after he talks to Amy." Andy knew that would upset her, but he also knew Ephram and Amy needed to talk.  
  
"But I don't want to wait that long, daddy! Ephram is okay now, and everyone knows it, so why does he have to talk to her before I get to see him? Ephram is MY brother!" Delia stormed off with her arms crossed.  
  
"I'll go talk to her." Nina looked at Andy with an apologetic smile, even though she hadn't done anything. She ran after Delia as fast as she could.  
  
"Today should be a fun day." Andy knew how many people actually cared about Ephram, so that meant not too many people would be coming, but at there would be enough to start trouble.  
  
The rule was Ephram could have only one person in the room at a time. So that meant it would be Amy, and then Delia...But he didn't know how many people would show up after that. If too many people came, Andy would have to ask some of them to leave, and visit whenever Ephram gets home, which wouldn't be too far in the future. That's when Andy wondered how many friends Ephram had at school these days.  
  
******  
  
Amy got out of the car before it even stopped. She ran into the hospital and didn't stop until she saw Dr. Brown, "How is he?" She asked breathlessly.  
  
"He's fine. It appears he had a few broken ribs, and one punctured a lung. That's what caused his heart to stop last night, it was because he wasn't getting enough oxygen. He's asleep now, but he said you could wake him up whenever you got here." Andy walked Amy the rest of the way to Ephram's room. He opened the door for her, and right after she walked in, closed it back again.  
  
******  
  
Amy turned around when she heard the door close, she had thought Dr. Brown was coming in with her, but apparently she was wrong. After turning back around, she slowly walked towards Ephram's bed. She looked at his eyes, which were closed, and then searched around the room for a chair.  
  
She found one and pulled it next to the bed. She just sat there for a few minutes, not wanting to wake Ephram up. He looked so peaceful, which Amy hadn't seen that expression on his face for the past twenty-four hours. She was glad he was happy, but she wanted to him to be awake at the same time.  
  
She stood up and put her arm on his right shoulder. She shook it a little to try to get him to move. He all of a sudden grabbed her arm and yelled, "BOO!" Amy jumped back with a scream, nearly falling over the chair.  
  
"Ephram Brown, I ought to have your head for that!" That little prank did scare her, but she was glad he was well enough to do that, "How are you feeling?"  
  
"I thought I already answered that question over the phone." Ephram smiled at Amy's forgetfulness, inside he knew he was really smiling at her, but he wouldn't tell her that.  
  
"Oh yeah, I knew that. I was..."  
  
"Just testing me? Yeah, that never works, so don't try it." Ephram interrupted her, knowing she wouldn't mind, "You know what? I'm kind of disappointed in you Amy Abbott."  
  
Amy didn't know what he was talking about, so she had to ask, "What are you talking about? I didn't do anything."  
  
"That's just it, you didn't do anything." Amy was more than confused, and Ephram could tell, "You didn't bring me a present or flowers or anything." Ephram smiled as he said the last sentence, he couldn't keep it in any longer.  
  
"You are such a dork!" Amy lightly punched him in his right arm.  
  
"Last I checked I was a guy." Ephram grabbed Amy's hand before she could punch him again, "I've got you this time. You can't escape."  
  
"Do you wanna bet?" Amy pulled away as hard as she could, successfully getting away from Ephram, "I knew you weren't strong enough for me."  
  
"Gee, I wonder why?" Ephram was being sarcastic.  
  
"Oh, yeah, I'm really so..."  
  
"Don't start this again, Amy. I told you it wasn't your fault, and I was serious. Now if you keep saying things like, it is, I'll have to take drastic measures." Ephram didn't know what that drastic measure would be, but he had a pretty good idea.  
  
"Oh yeah, and what's that?" She wasn't supposed to ask that question yet.  
  
"Uh, the reason I asked you to come here is because I wanted to ask you something." Ephram didn't want to tell her this now, but there was no time like the present.  
  
"What are you talking about? What do you want to ask me?"  
  
"Amy, when I hanging by that rope, and you sang that stupid song, I actually listened to it. I listened to one part especially, I think it was probably the chorus," Ephram didn't sing it, he only spoke the words to the song, "I'm falling even more in love with you, letting go of all I've held onto, I'm standing here until you make me move, I'm hanging by a moment here with you."  
  
"What about it?" Amy asked after Ephram stopped talking.  
  
"Those lines echoed through my head the whole time I was up there, and you weren't with me. Every part of that chorus was true to my life, I AM falling in love with you. And, I didn't think it was possible, but I'm falling even MORE in love with you every time I'm with you." Ephram looked into her eyes, without looking, he could tell she was smiling a little, "Amy, I have let go of everything I have ever known to be right in my life. When I felt horrible about my mother dying, you got me past that. That time that I hated my father for never being there for me or Delia, you told me to try and forgive him, and I did. I will stand with you as long as you will let me, Amy. I will be with you until you make me move."  
  
The smile on Amy's face grew bigger and bigger the more Ephram spoke.  
  
"And, for every second I am with you, I am hanging by a moment. Those words were more than true when I was dangling from that rope, but you never left, you never gave up. You had faith that I would make it through, and it is because of you that I'm still alive. It is because of you that I get to see my friends and family again. And, because of you, I get to tell all of this to you. I get to express what I have felt for you, since the first day I met you." Ephram looked down at the covers and started playing with one of the corners, "But you probably don't even care." He said quietly, not quite in a whisper.  
  
Amy stood closer to him and put her hand on his shoulder, "Yes, I do Ephram. Do you see my face? Do you see this smile? I have never been so happy in my entire life. I wanted to tell you the same things, but I didn't have the courage." Amy turned his head towards her, "Ephram, it's because of you I get out of bed each morning. Knowing that I have someone like you to see everyday lights up my life. I never want to miss a second when I'm with you, but sometimes I do, and that's okay too."  
  
"What are you talking about?"  
  
"I want to be with you, Ephram. And if I miss a minute of my life with you, so be it, I'll get it back someday. If you are saying what I think you are, I feel the same way." Amy didn't know what was going to happen when she said that, but when she did, Ephram's face said it all.  
  
"Amy..." Ephram could barely get the words out, he smiled and laughed a little, "Amy Abbott...Will you be my girlfriend?"  
  
Amy's smile got so big she thought her face would stay in that position forever, "Of course I will...Ephram Brown." She looked at him, and with bright eyes said, "You know what we have to do now, right?"  
  
"Seal it with a kiss." Amy nodded and leaned in closer. There lips touched slightly, and before either of them knew it, the kiss was over. 


	11. A Promise Kept

Hanging by a moment  
  
Disclaimer: I do not own Everwood or any of the characters, except for Jake, Abby, and the doctors, those are mine. But everything else, they are all property of the WB.  
  
Rating: PG  
  
  
  
Amy had left the room a few minutes after the kiss, not because of it, but because she knew Delia really wanted to see Ephram. Amy walked straight to where she had seen her last, "Okay, Delia, you can go in now, I'm sure Ephram would love to see you."  
  
Delia jumped out of her seat and ran straight to her brother's hospital room. She opened the door quietly; knowing there was another person in the room, "Hey Ephram!" She ran over to his bed.  
  
"Hey Del, how are you?" Ephram smiled as she looked at him with concern.  
  
"I'm good, how about you?" The repetitive question was getting on Ephram's nerves.  
  
"I've answered this so many times! I've been better, but I'm fine." Ephram wanted to tell Delia about him and Amy, but didn't really know if it was the right time, so he didn't.  
  
"I'm glad you're okay, I was so worried about you!"  
  
"So I heard! Amy said that you and Bright talked, how is he?" Ephram didn't really care, but he knew Delia liked him.  
  
"He put his hand through a candy machine." Delia giggled.  
  
"I think I heard something about that, it sounds like something he would do."  
  
"Ephram, Bright really isn't that mean, he's actually pretty nice, once you get to know him." Delia was standing up for her new friend, "I think you two should hang out more often."  
  
Hang out, with Bright Abbott? There was no way in the world Ephram and Bright would be caught talking to each other kindly. It was absurd, "I doubt that would ever work Delia, Bright and I have a different relationship than you and him." Ephram didn't want to hurt her feelings; she really was trying hard to make things right between the two boys, "I appreciate the thought though."  
  
"No problem." That was all Delia said. It was obvious she was a little hurt.  
  
"I'm sorry, Del, it just can't happen. Bright Abbott and I weren't meant to be friends...We're just not."  
  
"Why not?" Delia really wanted to make them like each other.  
  
As much as he wanted to, Ephram didn't have an answer to that question, "I...I don't know." Ephram just stared at the door.  
  
******  
  
Amy walked quickly past Dr. Brown, trying to hide the smile on her face.  
  
"I haven't seen you smile since yesterday...What happened in there with Ephram?" She had been caught.  
  
Amy stopped in her tracks, wanting, but knowing she couldn't ignore the man, "Hi Dr. Brown, how are you?" She tried to cover herself.  
  
"I'm fine, and apparently so are you. I'm still waiting for an answer." Dr. Brown didn't really care, but he thought it would be fun to find out.  
  
"Uh, well..." Amy didn't think she should be the one to tell him, considering he WAS Ephram's father, "I'm sorry, but you're going to have to ask Ephram about this, I think he should be the one to tell you." Amy knew she had said too much already, so she walked off to find the closest nurse, she had a surprise for Ephram.  
  
******  
  
Ephram and Delia sat in silence for awhile, at least until their father walked in with a puzzled look on his face, "What is going on with you and Amy? I just saw her walking down the hall with a huge smile. I asked her why, and she said I had to ask you."  
  
Ephram froze for a minute, not knowing what to say...Amy had made it so he had to tell them, right then and there, "Um, well, I uh...Amy and I are uh...We're kind of going out now." Ephram just blurted it out; he didn't even realize he was talking until it was over.  
  
"YOU ARE!?!" As soon as Delia heard what Ephram had said, she sat straight up in her seat, "Why didn't you tell me?"  
  
"Delia, I wanted to wait until the right time." Ephram paused for a second, "I personally don't think this was it, but I couldn't really change that." He smiled awkwardly at his dad.  
  
Andy was smiling right back at him, "It took you long enough!" Ephram was shocked by those words.  
  
"Excuse me?" Ephram thought they had placed some kind of a bet on how long it would take the two of them to get together.  
  
"I was wondering how long it would take the two of you, it's been so obvious how much you like each other!" Andy was still smiling.  
  
"Dad, please don't tell that to Amy." That would have ruined Ephram's day.  
  
"So, when are we going to watch that movie you promised me?" Delia asked, changing the subject for Ephram's sake.  
  
"Oh, Delia I don't know about that happening until we get home." Ephram knew she was disappointed.  
  
"Actually," Amy walked in the room, holding a small, rectangular present, "I have a surprise for the two of you." She handed it to Ephram, "Now you can't say I didn't get you anything." She smiled at Delia.  
  
"You do know that they know now, right?" Amy nodded at Ephram's question, "Okay, well, what is this?"  
  
"Ephram, most people, when they receive a gift from someone, would be opening it instead of asking the gift giver what the gift is." Amy smiled at Ephram this time.  
  
Ephram smiled back at her and quickly began ripping open his present, "Is this a joke?" Ephram lifted up a copy of Beauty and the Beast, "Are you trying to tell me something?"  
  
"You're not a beast, Ephram, it's for you and Delia. I talked to a nurse, and they should be bringing a TV and VCR in here in about five minutes." Amy looked around the room quickly, "Aren't we breaking a rule or something here?"  
  
Andy realized what she was talking about, only one person in the room at a time, "I think you and I should leave them alone, Amy. We can come back in about two hours."  
  
"No, dad, don't leave me to watch this movie, please!" Ephram hated Beauty and the Beast, but then remembered how much Delia loved it, *SIGH* "...Nevermind, you can go."  
  
Delia looked at him and smiled, "Thank you Amy." Amy turned back towards her and smiled, walking out the door.  
  
Sure enough, the TV and VCR came within minutes, and so Ephram and Delia were watching Beauty and the Beast. Ephram was glad Amy did this, because he knew how much it meant to Delia.  
  
He would be going home in a few days, and then he would finally get back to his normal life, after recovering from his injuries, anyway. Even though it hadn't even been a day since he was rescued, it seemed like he had been in that hospital for weeks. He wanted out, and was excited to know he would soon be able to walk around on solid ground again.  
  
One thing Ephram knew for certain, he would never go hiking, ever again.  
  
THE END!  
  
I hope you enjoyed this story, and I assure you there will be a sequel to it, but I have to think of something first. Please review and tell me what you think, and I'm glad to know I have some of you hooked...Especially OrliBloomLover...I appreciate those reviews, and everyone else's. Please continue to read my stories, as I'm sure there will be more than this and the sequel. Thank you for reading and reviewing, and please continue to do so! 


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